The following story was written by one of the workers here at Advice & Aid.
“I’m 18 . . . I just found out I’m pregnant. My boyfriend and I are scared out of our minds. He wants me to get an abortion. I don’t want to, but I think it’s my only option. I have nothing that I can give to this baby. No money, I don’t have my own place. I have nothing. But I also can’t tell my parents. . . “
This message popped up in our chat box at Advice & Aid one morning. It happened to be on the morning of my daughter’s birthday . . . a situation that really hit home. You see, my daughter was my “surprise” when I was only 20 years old.
My response to the person on the other end of the chat:
“Take a moment to breathe . . . You’re not alone.”
That first response started a conversation that would continue on and off between Krista (not her real name) and me for a few months. When I first met Krista, she was still very much undecided as to what to do. I had encouraged her to come in for an ultrasound so we could determine viability. Another month went by before she reached out to me again and told me she still hadn’t decided about continuing her pregnancy. Around her 17th week of pregnancy, she contacted me yet again to say she decided she would parent the baby. She was still having a hard time acknowledging the pregnancy with other family members and didn’t tell them until much later.
From the moment of first contact, I kept in touch with Krista on a regular basis. Almost 8 months from the first chat message, I heard from Krista that she had a baby boy. She said, “My family loves him more than anything and my boyfriend and his mom love him too . . . This whole experience is going one thousand times better than I thought it would.”
Getting to meet her little guy was one of the happiest moments in my life. To see Krista happy and nurturing her new baby boy brought so much joy to my heart. She joined our education classes* and has been attending ever since. Through those, she is learning how to tackle parenting, receive support from both staff and other moms in her class, and even earn clothes, diapers, and other things that she needs for her son.
I couldn’t be more thankful for answering that very first chat!
*To learn more about our Connections education program, click here.
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Krista’s story is all about ReThinking . . .
At first, she simply couldn’t even think about being a mom. The timing was all wrong, and there were a million reasons why she felt she couldn’t continue this pregnancy. But, by taking her time, thinking it through, and daring to rethink a life that was different than what she had planned, she reached a completely different conclusion.
And that’s why we encourage you to ReThink – your future may be different than you had planned, but it may be so very much better.
And as Krista’s story shows, she really didn’t have to do any of this alone. She got the help she needed – for as long as she needed it – right here with us!
Take the first step. Just start the conversation with us. We guarantee no judgment, no pressure. Just honest answers and someone who promises to walk with you through every step of the journey.
